After another session of play testing in the player test realms, Quinn & Valor have become available to the LoL public. The champion brings some interesting new twists into the game with an addition of an AoE (Area of Effect) blind, great focusing potential and an interesting ultimate. The tag team duo on paper seems like a match made in heaven, but do they work as a cohesive fighting force? Let’s have a look and find out.

Before we have a look at Quinn & Valor’s abilities and in game potential, let’s have a look as to how they present themselves both in and out of the fields of justice. The team’s standard skin is very nice, combining aspects of both Vayne’s and Talon’s designs to make Quinn stand out as a master of flying beasts whilst Valor stands as a nice combination of Anivia and Swain’s Crow to give him a unique look both in game and on the portrait. As the original skin stands up to the portrait’s presentation, the alternate skin (Pheonix Quinn) leaves more to be desired. The portrait is an interesting take on the champion and even brings in aspects of the Blood Elf race from World of Warcraft. The downside however is that the skin in portrait is okay, what is meant by this is that it doesn’t really stand out in comparison to other skins in the game. This average level of presentation is then also displayed in game where, although the particle effect changes are quite well done, the skin in game leaves a non-impressive feel.

Putting skins aside, let us now have a look at Quinn & Valor’s emotes. First off the dance, it is brilliant. Not just does it add hilarity to the champion but it also adds a familiar impression based off of the characters role. The fact that Quinn switches in and out with Valor on the fly makes this dance feels more appropriate as it is a style of a bird mating dance. Quinn’s jokes are a great laugh to have alongside the dance as it consists of Valor flying onto Quinn’s arm and telling her a knock knock joke about either Garen or Jarvin. These truly make me laugh every time I hear them and I am always happy to see that Riot have incorporated both sides of the tag team in a single emote. Lastly are the taunts that are very pleasing for Quinn’s role in the lane. It both warns your opponent of the looming destruction as well as also adds the bird like flair that the team are notable for.

Now let us see if Quinn & Valor’s abilities are balanced and are even that good in general as we take a gander.

Passive: Harrier

Valor marks a nearby enemy with Vulnerability for 4.5 seconds. If Quinn attacks a vulnerable enemy, she deals 15 + (10 * level) / 170 / 185 / 200 / 215 + (50% bonus AD) bonus physical damage. This cannot occur again for 10 seconds, or 3 seconds if Quinn triggers the vulnerability. Valor will first prioritize Quinn’s most recent attack target. If Quinn has not attacked anyone recently, Valor will target nearby low health units (prioritizing champions over minions).
Harrier is disabled while Tag Team is active.

The passive on Quinn is amazing when it comes to last hitting minions in lane or even in the jungle. When Valor comes swooping down and marks the target as vulnerable, you will have a very easy time getting the last hits on minions, even if they still have the majority of their health still on them. There is however one issue with this ability, that being that it is just too good to be true. The damage early game is not too bad as the player will not get big damage dealing items until later on. However when it comes to mid or late game, the damage potential on this passive alone is extraordinary. So extraordinary in fact that it might just have to be called over powered at late stages of the game. This is due to the damage potential possibly exceeding five hundred points of damage as soon as the player obtains two hundred AD and hits level eighteen. It may not seem like much when it comes to dealing with tank units but when she was played for the first time with items like Black Cleaver and Last Whisper, her damage output was too great.

Now this is subject to opinion however as it depends on the players build more than the overall damage of the passive alone. The damage alone is fine and the amount of times it can be utilised is nicely balanced. It may just be an issue when it comes to late game, pure ADC (Attack Damage Carry) builds.

Blinding Assault: Range: 1025 Cooldown: 11/ 10/ 9/ 8/ 7 Cost: 60/ 65/ 70/ 75/ 80 mana

ACTIVE: Quinn commands Valor to fly forwards in a line, stopping when he collides with an enemy. Valor then deals physical damage and blinds nearby enemies for 1.5 seconds.

• PHYSICAL DAMAGE: 70 / 110 / 150 / 190 / 230 (+ 65% bonus AD)

ACTIVE – TAG TEAM: Valor deals physical damage to all enemies in an area and blinds them for 1.5 seconds.

• PHYSICAL DAMAGE: 70 / 110 / 150 / 190 / 230 (+ 65% bonus AD)

Quinn & Valor’s first ability is extremely useful when it comes to single targets and even in team fight situations. The AoE blind is a much better alternative to the similar ability that Graves has. It is extremely useful as it guarantees that minions, camps and champions will not be able to auto attack you within that 1.5 second window, giving you the edge you need to out damage or run away from the battle.

The ability in both forms is well balanced. The blind does not go up per level but instead stays at a constant level throughout so it does not make these two impossible to attack. As well as this the AoE potential of the ability is not too overwhelming. It covers a nice distance around the target location which is great for cramped spaces rather than open gaps. Cooldown, damage output, mana cost and the 65% AD ratio make this ability a great ADC power as well as a fantastic damage dealer for those pesky mid to late game team fight situations.

Heightened Senses: Range: 2100 Cooldown: 50/ 45/ 40/ 35/ 30 Cost: None

PASSIVE: Attacking a Vulnerable target will increase Quinn’s attack speed for 3 seconds.

• BONUS ATTACK SPEED: 20 / 25 / 30 / 35 / 40%

PASSIVE – TAG TEAM: Valor has bonus attack speed.

ACTIVE: Valor reveals the surrounding area for 2 seconds.

• BONUS ATTACK SPEED: 40 / 50 / 60 / 70 / 80%

Heightened Senses as a passive allows the player to gain an initial burst of attack speed upon focusing down targets in the lane. The attack speed passive is a nice touch to the ability however where this ability shines is it’s active. Upon activation, the ability reveals a big area around Quinn or Valor showing enemy positions, incoming ganks, Dragon & Baron camps and much more. The amount of sight that you get does not increase per level so it is a nice balance, but the view it does supply is great. On an ADC it is essential to use this ability when possible in the lane if you are not warding well so that you can anticipate the enemy and potentially turn the tide of the battle.

 Vault: Range: 750 Cooldown: 12/ 11/ 10/ 9/ 8 Cost: 50 mana

ACTIVE: Quinn dashes to an enemy, dealing physical damage and slowing the target’s movement speed by 50%. This slowly decays over 2 seconds. Upon reaching the target, she leaps off and lands near her maximum attack range away from the target. Valor will immediately mark this target as Vulnerable.
• PHYSICAL DAMAGE: 40 / 70 / 100 / 130 / 160 (+ 20% bonus AD)

ACTIVE – TAG TEAM: Valor dashes to an enemy, dealing physical damage and slowing the target’s movement speed by 70%. This slowly decays over 2 seconds.
• PHYSICAL DAMAGE: 40 / 70 / 100 / 130 / 160 (+ 20% bonus AD)

Vault is an amazing ability and my favourite ability in Quinn & Valor’s ability set. Why you may ask? Well it is as simple as looking at the decaying slow effect.
The damage on this ability is at a good, balanced level however the slow and catch up ability are the things that make this move so great. As Quinn, this slow is essential to focus down individual targets and even catch up to targets running away that are out of range. Sometimes I have experienced a bug where If you last hit a target with your vault you may sometimes jump back twice as much of the distance as you ordinarily should. This can be both seen as a bug or an actual side note to the ability, however it is something that I believe Riot Games will fix in the coming weeks.

As Valor this ability is essential to focus down carries and other squishy opponents. As valor, your movement speed and attack speed are going to be increased to the extent where it is necessary to go in on an opponent. Vault is there to help you both get into the fight with this great damage output as well as assist in almost making the target never get away from the fight.

Tag Team: Cooldown: 140/ 120/ 100 Cost: 100 mana

ACTIVE: Valor replaces Quinn on the battlefield as a mobile melee attacker for 20 seconds with an alternate set of abilities. Valor can move through units and gains 80% bonus movement speed that gradually decreases to 20% while in combat.

Skystrike: Range: 700

ACTIVE – TAG TEAM: Quinn returns to perform Skystrike, dealing physical damage to all enemies in a large area. The damage increases depending on how much health they are missing. If Skystrike has not been cast before Tag Team ends, it will be cast automatically.

• MINIMUM PHYSICAL DAMAGE: 120 / 170 / 220 (+ 50% bonus AD)
• MAXIMUM PHYSICAL DAMAGE: 240 / 340 / 440 (+ 100% bonus AD)

The ultimate for Quinn & Valor is the game changer that every ADC at first may find awkward to use. Instead of other similar ultimate’s from Elise and Shyvanna where they Shape shift to their alternate forms and gain bonuses to being in those forms, Quinn switches places with Valor giving both characters their own different set of unique ability changes and speed values.

The tough part to the ultimate that players might have trouble with at first is when to use the ability. Twenty seconds might not seem like a long time on paper but in game it is all the time you need as Valor’s movement speed buff allows him to get into a battle from far away with great ease. Players will find the initial use of the Tag Team ability for run away, low health targets, getting in and out of team fight encounters and general getting back into a lane that is being pushed. Players will have to keep in mind that they will be switching from a ranged ADC to a Melee ADC upon switching out which could confuse some summoners initially. Valor does not get any bonuses to armour or magic resist so he will be just as squishy as Quinn unless you incorporate items such as Sunfire Cape and Frozen Mallet.

The second part of the ability, Skystrike, is a nice little finish to the end of your time playing as Valor. You can go into a team fight, cause some great damage with Valor and then all of a sudden come out with a great AoE of burst damage that could initially kill all enemies that are in its range as long as they are of low enough health. This is the ability that will make squishes die with ease and will turn tanks into sponges. The timing for this ability however does have to be timed correctly for its full potential to be realised but it’s something that comes with practicing the champion for a long enough time.

Quinn & Valor have been a joy to play from the initial release and I am definitely going to love the builds and the games in the future. Her abilities and capabilities are very nice in both damage and balance with the addition of being very versatile when it comes to positions in a team. The only debatable aspect of the balancing is the damage out put on the passive which is dependent on build and whether you are playing as Quinn due to the passive not being available when playing as Valor. She is a must have for all people that love playing as ADC’s and is even a pick up for junglers, mid laners and top laners due to their versatility, damage & ganking potential.

So what do you think of Quinn & Valor? Do they fly over your expectations or do they cower underneath the other champions on the roster? Be sure to let us know what you think in the comments below and be sure to enjoy these new avionic additions to Riot Games’ League of Legends Roster.